Notre Dame is one of the most famous and popular colleges in America. It’s known widely for its success on the football field but has put out some great basketball players too. Here is a look at five fun facts about Notre Dame and the NBA Draft.

Who Was the First Notre Dame Player to Make a Three Point Shot?

The first Notre Dame player to go on and make a three pointer in pro basketball was Collis Jones who was picked in the first round in the NBA by the Bucks and in the first round in the ABA by the Dallas Chaparrals. He played his entire career in the ABA.

Notre Dame Players and Their Turnovers

The first five Notre Dame basketball players to go on and turn the ball over 1,000 or more times in the NBA were Orlando Woolridge, Kelly Tripucka, Bill Laimbeer, Bill Hanzlik, and LaPhonso Ellis. Ellis barely made the group, finishing his career with a total of 1,001 turnovers.

The Top Notre Dame Rebounder in the NBA

The Notre Dame basketball player to have more career rebounds than anyother is Bill Laimbeer with 10,400. Prior to Laimbeer, the top spot on that list was held by Notre Dame player Tom Hawkins who played in the 1960s and finished with a total of 4,607.

The Top Assist Makers in the NBA from Notre Dame

The first five Notre Dame players to finish their NBA careers with over 2,000 assists were Adrian Dantley, Kelly Tripucka, Bill Hanzlik, John Paxson, and Bill Laimbeer.

A Notre Dame Drought in the 1960s

Notre Dame saw at least one player get drafted by the NBA in every decade from the 1950s to the 2010s, except for the 1960s. Tom Hawkins was taken by the Minneapolis Lakers in 1959 out of Notre Dame and another Fighting Irish player wouldn’t be drafted until Collis Jones in 1971.

The University of Oklahoma is probably most known as a football school. They have had a lot of success over the years though in basketball too. Here are five fun facts about the University of Oklahoma and the NBA Draft.

The First Sooners NBA Draft Pick Ever

The first Oklahoma Sooner picked in the NBA Draft was Paul Courty. This happened in 1949 in what was called the BAA Draft as the NBA had yet to be formed. He was picked by the Providence Steamrollers but elected to play for the Phillips 66ers of the Amateur Athletic Union instead.

Oklahoma Sooners Drafted In The First Round

The first eight Oklahoma Sooners taken in the first round of the draft were Marcus Freiberger in 1951, Garfield Heard in 1970, Alvan Adams in 1975, Wayman Tisdale in 1985, Harvey Grant in 1988, Stacey King and Mookie Blaylock in 1989, and Blake Griffin in 2009.

The First Sooners Draft Pick To Make A Three Point Shot

The first Oklahoma Sooners draft pick to make a three pointers was Donald Sidle. He was drafted out of Oklahoma in 1968 by the San Francisco Warriors but instead chose to play in the American Basketball Association. In his second season in 1969/70, he made the first three pointer by a Sooners draft pick while playing for the Miami Floridians.

Most Assists By A Oklahoma Sooners Draft Pick

Prior to guard Mookie Blaylock taking the top spot with nearly 6,000 career assists, the most career NBA assists for a Sooners draft pick was the 4,012 dished out by center Alvan Adams.

The First 3 Sooners Draft Picks In The 10,000 Point Club

The first three Oklahoma Sooners draft picks to score over 10,000 career points in the NBA were Alvan Adams, Wayman Tisdale, and Mookie Blaylock.

Very few players are known simply by one name, but when you are as good as Ichiro Suzuki, that’s guaranteed to happen. A lot of baseball fans were skeptical of Ichiro‘s abilities when he came to Major League Baseball from Japan, but he has gone on to prove each and every one of them wrong. Here are five fun facts about Ichiro Suzuki.

Ichiro Suzuki Hits Home Runs

Two of Ichiro’s first four career home runs were hit off of Rangers pitcher Jeff Zimmerman. He hit the first of his career off of him on April 6, 2001 and then the fourth of his career off of him on July 2, 2001.

Ichiro Suzuki & Hideo Nomo?

In a 5-1 victory over the Red Sox in 2001 during his rookie season with the Mariners, Ichiro Suzuki was hit by a pitch for the very first time. The pitcher who hit him was Hideo Nomo.

10 Straight Gold Gloves

Amazingly, Ichiro Suzuki won the Rawlings Gold Glove Award 10 years in a row. This happened in his first 10 seasons of Major League Baseball play.

What Would You Trade For Ichiro Suzuki

With the Mariners in rebuilding mode in 2012, Ichiro came to management and asked for a trade. The team would send him to the Yankees and in return receive Danny Farquhar and D.J. Mitchell.

Ichiro Suzuki’s First All-Star Game Hit

In the 2001 MLB All-Star Game held in Seattle, Ichiro’s first one, he got the first All-Star Game hit of his career off of former Mariners star pitcher Randy Johnson who had made the team while pitching for the Arizona Diamondbacks that year. This was Johnson’s tenth and final All-Star Game. After reaching base, Ichiro would then steal second with another former Mariner, Alex Rodriguez, at the plate.

Kris Bryant hit the news as a highly touted prospect for the Chicago Cubs. The young third baseman quickly made his mark on the league too. Here are five fun facts about Kris Bryant of the Cubs.

Kris Bryant’s High School Alumni

Kris Bryant went to Bonanza High School in Nevada. Other notable names to attend the same high school as him include actress Jenna Jameson, mixed martial artist Gray Maynard, Klout founder Joe Fernandez, mixed martial artist Frank Mir, golfer Scott Piercy, and NFL player Gerald Riggs.

Kris Bryant, College Student

In college at the University of San Diego, Kris Bryant began as a biology major before switching to finance.

Kris Bryant and the MLB Draft

The Chicago Cubs picked Kris Bryant with the second overall pick in the 2013 MLB Draft. The last time the Cubs used the second overall pick was in 2001 when they selected pitcher Mark Prior.

Kris Bryant’s First MLB Game

In his first Major League Baseball game, a 5-4 loss to the Padres, Kris Bryant went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts. All three strikeouts came at the hands of the Padres’ James Shields.

…And Once Again, Dexter Fowler Scores!

Four of the first five home runs that Kris Bryant hit in his Major League Baseball career came with Cubs’ centerfielder Dexter Fowler on base at the time.

Madison Bumgarner continues to be one of the most highly thought of pitchers in baseball. With his long list of accomplishments, he’s got the track record to justify all that praise too. Here is a look at five fun facts about Madison Bumgarner.

Who Was Drafted Before Madison Bumgarner?

In 2007, the San Francisco Giants selected Madison Bumgarner with the 10th overall pick in the Major League Baseball Draft. The nine players picked ahead of him were David Price, Mike Moustakas, Josh Vitters, Daniel Moskos, Matt Wieters, Ross Detwiler, Matt LaPorta, Casey Weathers, and Jarrod Parker.

Madison Bumgarner’s First Game

In Madison Bumgarner’s first MLB game ever, a 4-3 Giants loss to the Padres, he gave up five hits, two earned runs, and two home runs in five and a third innings.

Madison Bumgarner’s Top Home Run Opponent

The first opposing player to hit a total of five home runs off of Madison Bumgarner during their career was Carlos Gonzalez of the Colorado Rockies. Gonzalez actually had two of the first eight home runs Bumgarner ever gave up.

Madison Bumgarner’s First Grand Slam Home Run Given Up

The first grand slam home run Madison Bumgarner would give up during his career was hit on May 17, 2013 by Jordan Pacheco of the Rockies.

Who Did Madison Bumgarner Intentionally Walk For The First Time?

The first intentional walk issued by Madison Bumgarner in his career went to Chase Headley of the Padres in 2009.

Paxton Lynch spent three seasons as the starting quarterback for the University of Memphis prior to declaring for the NFL Draft. He was highly thought of by a lot of football minds, including John Elway of the Broncos who engineered a late first round trade to improve his team’s position and select Lynch with the 26th overall pick. Anyone looking for some Paxton Lynch fun facts, need look no further than here.

Paxton Lynch’s Birthplace

Paxton Lynch was born in San Antonio, Texas. Other football players born in San Antonio to go on and play quarterback in the NFL like Paxton Lynch include Tony Adams, Richard Bartel, Koy Detmer, Steve Grogan, Randy Johnson, Kliff Kingsbury, Tommy Kramer, Tobin Rote, and Jim Bob Taylor.

Paxton Lynch’s Best College FB Game

He had a number of great ones, but one of the best games Paxton Lynch had while in college came in a win over BYU in the 2014 Miami Beach Bowl when he completed 24 of 46 passes for 306 yards and four touchdowns while also rushing the ball 13 times for 38 yards and another three touchdowns.

Another Great Paxton Lynch Game

The next season, in 2015, Paxton Lynch had another great game. In a 63-0 Memphis win over SMU, he tied an FBS record when he threw seven touchdown passes in the first half.

The Most Passing Yards By Paxton Lynch

The most passing yards Paxton Lynch ever had in one game in college was the 447 he threw for in a 2015 win on the road at the University of Tulsa.

Paxton Lynch: Others Taken at Number 26

The Broncos chose Paxton Lynch with the 26th pick in the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft. Other interesting names to be chosen over the years with the 26th pick include Steve Sewell, Clay Matthews, Lito Sheppard, Dana Stubblefield, Billy Ray Smith, Don Mosebar, Jim Harbaugh, Joe DeLamielleure, Robert Porcher, Alan Faneca, Dave Brown, and Ray Lewis.

Laremy Tunsil was purely dominant as an offensive tackle at Ole Miss during the two and a half seasons he was active. He quickly drew notice from NFL teams and was talked about as a possible number one overall selection prior to the Rams and then Eagles trading up to position themselves to select the two highly rated quarterbacks. Tunsil eventually fell to the Dolphins with the 13th pick. Here are five Laremy Tunsil fun facts for those interested in this great young player.

Laremy Tunsil: Number One

Coming out of Columbia High School in Lake City, Florida, Laremy Tunsil was ranked as the number one offensive tackle prospect in the nation.

Laremy Tunsil’s Final College Football Game

In his final college football game, Laremy Tunsil scored the first and only touchdown of his career. It came at the end of the first half of the 2016 Sugar Bowl when Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly rolled out to the right and threw a lateral pass back to a wide open Laremy Tunsil for the easy score.

Ezekiel Elliott was the highest rated running back available in the 2016 NFL Draft and the Dallas Cowboys didn’t wast any time selecting him. When Dallas picked Ezekiel Elliott in the draft, using the fourth overall pick to do so, it showed how highly they thought of this great player out of Ohio State University. Here is a look at five fun facts about this highly touted young running back.

Ezekiel Elliott’s High School Stats

Ezekiel Elliott was a star running back for John Burroughs High School in Ladue, Missouri. As a junior, he ran for 1,802 yards and 34 touchdowns. As a senior, his total rushing yards rose to 2,155 and he scored 40 touchdowns on the ground.

Ezekiel Elliott’s Best College Football Game

Ezekiel Elliott’s best college football game came in 2015 against Indiana when he carried the ball 23 times for 274 yards, an average of 11.9 yards per carry, and three touchdowns.

Jumping Ezekiel Elliott

At the 2016 NFL Combine held before the NFL Draft, Ezekiel Elliott was measured to have a 32.5 inch vertical leap and a broad jump of nine feet 10 inches.

Ezekiel Elliott Finished 8th in Heisman Voting

In 2015, Buckeyes running back Ezekiel Elliott finished in 8th place in voting for the Heisman Trophy. The seven players finishing ahead of him were Dalvin Cook of Florida State, Leonard Fournette of LSU, Keenan Reynolds of Navy, Baker Mayfield of Oklahoma, Deshaun Watson of Clemson, Christian McCaffrey of Stanford, and the winner, Derrick Henry of Alabama.

How Many First Round Running Backs Have The Cowboys Drafted?

The Dallas Cowboys had selected seven running backs in the NFL Draft, prior to taking Ezekiel Elliott in 2016. Those seven players were Calvin Hill in 1969, Duane Thomas in 1970, Bill Thomas in 1972, Charley Young in 1974, Tony Dorsett in 1977, Emmitt Smith in 1990, and Felix Jones in 2008.

Joey Bosa came out of Ohio State University as a highly thought of linebacker on the national scene. The Chargers selected Joey Bosa with the third overall pick in 2016, making him the first defensive player taken that year. Here is a look at five fun facts about this young and impressive defensive star.

Two Time Winner of the Smith-Brown Defensive Lineman of the Year

The Smith-Brown Defensive Lineman of the Year is given out to the best Big Ten defensive lineman as voted on by the conference’s coaches. Joey Bosa won the award twice, first in 2014 and then again in 2015. He was the third player to win it twice after Mike Vrabel in 1995 and 1996 and Wendell Bryant in 2000 and 2001.

Joey Bosa Attended an Impressive High School

Joey Bosa attended St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Other famous football players who went to high school there include Geno Atkins, Giovani Bernard, Michael Irvin, Brian Piccolo, Daryl Porter, and Major Wright.

Joey Bosa’s College Football Quarterback Sacks

Joey Bosa would finish his three year college football career with 26 total sacks. The first sack he ever got at the college level came against Northwestern in 2013. His last came in 2015 against Michigan.

Other Chargers Top 3 NFL Draft Selections

When the NFL world heard the Chargers select Joey Bosa with the third overall pick in 2016, it was only the fifth time San Diego had held a pick in the top three. They’d had the number two pick three times, selecting Walt Sweeney in 1963, Bo Matthews in 1974, and Ryan Leaf in 1998. They’d also held the number one overall pick in 2004, using it to pick quarterback Eli Manning before trading him to the Giants.

Joey Bosa’s Famous Father

Joey Bosa’s father, John, played football at Boston College. He would go on and spend the 1987, 1988, and 1989 seasons with the Miami Dolphins.

Carson Wentz comes to the NFL out of North Dakota State. This isn’t usually thought of as an NFL hot bed of talent but the talent in this young quarterback is hard to ignore. The Eagles traded a lot away to be able to get up to the second overall pick and get him too. Here is a look at five fun facts about this upcoming quarterback.

North Dakota State’s NFL Draft History

North Dakota State had 35 players selected in the NFL Draft prior to the Eagles picking Carson Wentz. He was the first quarterback to come out of the school though and go on to be picked in the draft.

Carson Wentz, the Backup Quarterback

Prior to being named the starting quarterback at the beginning of his junior season, Carson Wentz was the backup QB for the North Dakota State Bison for two seasons. The starter in front of him was Brock Jensen. Jensen was undrafted when he came out of college, eventually signing with the Dolphins and later playing with Ottawa of the Canadian Football League.

Carson Wentz’s First TD Pass

Carson Wentz’s first college football touchdown pass came against Prairie View A&M as a freshman in 2012 when he came on late in a blowout win.

First Round Quarterbacks Drafted By The Philadelphia Eagles

Prior to taking Carson Wentz in the NFL Draft, the Eagles had only selected four quarterbacks in the opening round in their history. Those four were Davey O’Brien in 1939, Frank Tripucka in 1949, John Reaves in 1972, and Donovan McNabb in 1999. Like Wentz, McNabb was taken with the second overall pick.

Carson Wentz At The NFL Combine

At the NFL Combine held before the 2016 NFL Draft, Carson Wentz ran a 4.77 second 40 yard dash, had a 30.5 inch vertical leap, and a 9 foot 10 inch broad jump.